New Rules NYC (#Wattys2015 Winner)

Party Status

CHAPTER 15: EMMA

Katie teetered over in heels, executing a well-practiced maneuver of lightly grasping her dress so it didn’t ride up as she transitioned onto the couch. Her hair looked like she had just walked out of a dry bar, she must have spent a good hour on it this morning. I wondered what it was like to view the world from her eyes each day.

I looked down at my jeans and flats. So what if I didn’t spend my morning preening myself to be presented to the world, right now all I cared about was getting this party sorted. I resigned to make more of an effort tomorrow, frustrated that this girl had this kind of effect over me. Our last two status meetings had been spent assigning all the crap that we had to get through and giving Katie an event 101 on how we did events East & Low.

“How did it go with the venue fit out?” I say.

“They said they can’t move forward until they get the designs.”

“You have the designs though right? They are in the folder I shared the other day?”

“Oh. Cool. I’ll take a look.” She took down another note, obliviously adding time to an already crazy schedule.

“If you’re not sure, or someone asks for something, just ask. Ok? You don’t have to wait for these catchups.”

Katie nodded along and flashed her big white teeth. I watched the flesh her wrist resting in her lap, wondering where the gold bracelet was from. It looked expensive.

“So you’re cool to go and meet the caterer tomorrow?” I said.

Katie was distant, blank faced for a second, as if reverting to her natural state then snapping back with a smile and an eye flutter. “Oh. Yeah. Vince actually said I could have the end of the week off. I have some friends in town and…”

“So you won’t be in Thursday or Friday?”

“No. Sorry. I thought you knew. Oh. Now I feel bad.”

I didn’t address the fact that a first year intern was getting her time off casually approved by the head of the label. But there were other places I needed to put my energy. I took a breath. Suddenly a feeling of disgust rolled up from my stomach. This girl was doing something to my insides.

“Ok. What I really need from you tomorrow is to lock off the booze order with the events people. You have the list. Just let me know any questions.”

“Yeah. For sure. That is one thing I’m an expert in.” She laughed, I gave her an odd smile and inhaled, putting my laptop down beside me.

“Katie. I really like you. You know we can talk right?”

“Yeah. Thanks so much for making me a part of this Emma. It’s unreal. Do you have a dress yet? I think I know what I’m going to wear. Not 100% But I think so.”

“Yeah. What I mean is – there have been a bunch of interns that come through here, some last more than others.”

“You know what is really hard. This industry is so much about looks, and people treat you differently. It’s hard for us to show that we can succeed because we are good at the job, you know?”

I tried not to let my jaw hit the floor while listening to her, I could taste the vomit in my mouth from this ridiculousness.

“Yeah,” I said, trying to put what she had said in perspective, “And a lot of people don’t last that long, they get caught up in that crap. Not many interns work closely with Vince, and the ones that do, not too many are still around. He’s great but I guess it’s just important to see things as they really are. I know it seems like there are a lot of opportunities but some of them are smoke and mirrors. Watch out for the bullshit. You know? Trust me, I’ve seen it all.”

Subtle. Not subtle. I don’t know. I had to be relatively clear to get through to this girl. I could smell burning plastic as something crunched away in her head. Then it came. Firstly the re-cross of the legs, her calf pulling tight, then a shoulder roll – finally a snarky smile that stretched wide across her face, a big “Yeah. Whatever.” painted cheek to cheek.

“Thanks so much Emma. It’s great to have someone that has been here so long helping out. I really appreciate it.” She says, like she has it all figured out.

The subtext of our little chat was actually relaxing me. The calming effect of deciding that I would be doing this project myself and not having to babysit this dainty princess.

She thought this strategy of hers would open a whole a new era of doors as she graduated into the real world, but she didn’t fully grasp what was behind this particular door. I had tried. I didn’t mind stepping aside and watching her trot down the same path in her expensive heels. Perceptions of self worth and entitlement can be a powerful concoction.

I vanquished the next hour reading about passionate young women creating startups and following their dreams, shaping and building something. I needed some of their sweet elixir – seeing people that appear to have been born into the life that should have been designated for you, picturing yourself making all the decisions that got them to where they are.

My head flicked through possibilities as I applied for multiple jobs, pondering if life would be different somewhere else, quickly updating my documents and passing them along to a recruiter that was a friend of a friend. With what it cost to live in this city, surely there were all kinds of jobs that paid better then this.

The party was actually starting to feel like a reality, the guest list starting to appear somewhat impressive. Choosing to have it at the intersection Fashion Week and the NBA All-star weekend meant that everyone was in town, but there were a hundred other events competing for their attendance. It showed Vince’s brazen attitude, how he positioned East & Low to the world.

I didn’t need the big names to hangout all night – one photo was enough for us to announce their presence to the world.